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2011 | Book

Chemistry of Opioids

Editor: Hiroshi Nagase

Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg

Book Series : Topics in Current Chemistry

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About this book

Recent Advances in the Synthesis of Morphine and Related Alkaloids; by N. Chida * Opioids in Preclinical and Clinical Trials; by H. Nagase and H. Fujii * Synthesis of 14-Alkoxymorphinan Derivatives and Their Pharmacological Actions; by H. Schmidhammer and M. Spetea * 14-Amino-4,5-Epoxymorphinan Derivatives and Their Pharmacological Actions; by J. W. Lewis and S. M. Husbands * Nonpeptidic Delta (δ) Opioid Agonists and Antagonists of the Diarylmethylpiperazine Class: What Have We Learned?; by S. N. Calderon * Synthesis of Neoclerodane Diterpenes and Their Pharmacological Effects; by K. M. Lovell, K. M. Prevatt-Smith, A. Lozama and T. E. Prisinzano * Synthesis of Novel Basic Skeletons Derived from Naltrexone; by H. Nagase and H. Fujii * Twin and Triplet Drugs in Opioid Research; by H. Fujii * 3D-Pharmacophore Identification for κ-Opioid Agonists Using Ligand-Based Drug-Design Techniques; by N. Yamaotsu and S. Hirono

Table of Contents

Frontmatter
Recent Advances in the Synthesis of Morphine and Related Alkaloids
Abstract
Morphine, an alkaloid isolated from the opium poppy, has been widely used as an analgesic, and has been a fascinating synthetic target of organic chemists. After the first total synthesis reported in 1952, a number of synthetic studies toward morphine have been reported, and findings obtained in such studies have greatly contributed to the progress of synthetic organic chemistry as well as medicinal chemistry. This review provides an overview of recent studies toward the total synthesis of morphine and related alkaloids. Work reported in the literature since 2004 will be reviewed.
Graphical Abstract
Noritaka Chida
Opioids in Preclinical and Clinical Trials
Abstract
Since 1952, when Gates determined the stereo structure of morphine, numerous groups have focused on discovering a nonnarcotic opioid drug [1]. Although several natural, semisynthetic, and synthetic opioid ligands (alkaloids and peptides) have been developed in clinical studies, very few were nonnarcotic opioid drugs [2]. One of the most important studies in the opioid field appeared in 1976, when Martin and colleagues [3] established types of opioid receptors (these are now classified into μ, δ, and κ types). Later, Portoghese discovered a highly selective μ type opioid receptor antagonist, β-funaltrexamine [4]. This led to the finding that the μ type opioid receptor was correlated to drug dependence [5]. Consequently, δ, and particularly κ, opioid agonists were expected to lead to ideal opioid drugs. Moreover, opioid antagonists were evaluated for the treatment of symptoms related to undesirable opioid system activation. In this chapter, we provide a short survey of opioid ligands in development and describe the discovery of the two most promising drugs, TRK-851 [6] and TRK-820 (nalfurafine hydrochloride) [7].
Graphical Abstract
Hiroshi Nagase, Hideaki Fujii
Synthesis of 14-Alkoxymorphinan Derivatives and Their Pharmacological Actions
Abstract
Among opioids, morphinans play an important role as therapeutically valuable drugs. They include pain relieving agents such as naturally occurring alkaloids (e.g. morphine, codeine), semisynthetic derivatives (e.g. oxycodone, oxymorphone, buprenorphine), and synthetic analogs (e.g. levorphanol). Currently used opioid analgesics also share a number of severe side effects, limiting their clinical usefulness. The antagonist morphinans, naloxone and naltrexone are used to treat opioid overdose, opioid dependence, and alcoholism. All these opioid drugs produce their biological actions through three receptor types, µ, δ, and κ, belonging to the G-protein-coupled receptor family. Considerable effort has been put forward to understand the appropriate use of opioid analgesics, while medicinal chemistry and opioid pharmacology have been continuously engaged in the search for safer, more efficacious and nonaddicting opioid compounds, with the final goal to reduce complications and to improve patient compliance. Toward this goal, recent advances in chemistry, ligand-based structure activity relationships and pharmacology of 14-alkoxymorphinans are reviewed in this chapter. Current developments of different structural patterns of 14-alkoxymorphinans as research tools and their potential therapeutic opportunities are also summarized.
Helmut Schmidhammer, Mariana Spetea
14-Amino-4,5-Epoxymorphinan Derivatives and Their Pharmacological Actions
Abstract
14-Hydroxy-7,8-dihydromorphinone (oxymorphone) and its derivatives (oxycodone, naloxone, naltrexone) have become among the most important clinical agents to have been produced from opium. 14-Aminocodeinone and its 7,8-dihydro and morphinone derivatives are of more recent origin thanks to the work of Professor Gordon Kirby and his collaborators. The 14-amino parent compounds have proved of limited interest but their 14-acylamino- and 14-alkylamino derivatives have been extensively studied. The 4′-substituted cinnamoylamino-17-cyclopropylmethyl-7,8-dihydronormorphinones, C-CAM and M-CAM are the best available selective MOR irreversible antagonists and the related dihydrocodeinone MC-CAM, 4′-chlorocinnamoylamino-17-cyclopropylmethyl-7,8-dihydronorcodeinone, is a long-acting MOR partial agonist with extended MOR-pseudoirreversible antagonist activity that could be a candidate for pharmacotherapy of opiate abuse/dependence.
Graphical Abstract
John W. Lewis, Stephen M. Husbands
Nonpeptidic Delta (δ) Opioid Agonists and Antagonists of the Diarylmethylpiperazine Class: What Have We Learned?
Abstract
The discovery of the selective delta (δ) opioid agonists SNC 80 and BW373U86, which possess a diarylmethylpiperazine structure unique among opioids, represented a major advance in the field of δ-opioid ligands. Extensive research has recently been performed to uncover the structure–activity relationships (SAR) of this class of ligands, thereby providing valuable tools for the pharmacological characterization of the δ opioid receptor. This review focuses on the SAR of this unique series of ligands, and provides an overview of the various chemical routes that have been developed and optimized through the years to allow the syntheses of these ligands on a multigram scale. The search for selective δ opioid agonists and antagonists, as well as for those with mixed opioid agonist properties with potential therapeutic value, continues. Several questions regarding the interaction at the molecular level of diphenylmethylpiperazine derivatives and related analogs with opioid receptors and in particular with the δ opioid system still remain unanswered. Indeed, the development and pharmacological characterization of novel nonpeptidic δ opioid ligands remains an active area of research, as it may provide a better understanding of the role of this receptor in multiple disease states and disorders.
Graphical Abstract
Silvia N. Calderon
Synthesis of Neoclerodane Diterpenes and Their Pharmacological Effects
Abstract
Salvinorin A is a neoclerodane diterpene that has been shown to be an agonist at kappa opioid receptors. Its unique structure makes it an attractive target for synthetic organic chemists due to its seven chiral centers and diterpene scaffold. This molecule is also interesting to pharmacologists because it is a non-serotonergic hallucinogen, and the first opioid ligand discovered that lacks a basic nitrogen. There have been several total synthesis approaches to salvinorin A, and these will be detailed within this chapter. Additionally, research efforts have concentrated on structure modification of the salvinorin A scaffold through semi-synthetic methods. Most modifications have focused on the manipulation of the acetate at C-2 and the furan ring. However, chemistry has also been developed to generate analogs at the C-1 ketone, the C-4 methyl ester, and the C-17 lactone. The synthetic methodologies developed for the salvinorin A scaffold will be described, as well as specific analogs with interesting biological activities.
Graphical Abstract
Kimberly M. Lovell, Katherine M. Prevatt-Smith, Anthony Lozama, Thomas E. Prisinzano
Synthesis of Novel Basic Skeletons Derived from Naltrexone
Abstract
We will describe eight interesting reactions using naltrexone derivatives. Almost all these reactions are characteristic of naltrexone derivatives, and can lead to the synthesis of many novel skeletons that provide new interesting pharmacological data. Some of the new reactions that were found with naltrexone derivatives were expanded into general reactions. For example, the reaction of 6α-hydroxyaldehyde derived from naltrexone led to the oxazoline dimer and the 1,3,5-trioxazatriquinane skeleton (triplet drug); this reaction was applied to general ketones which were converted to α-hydroxyaldehydes, followed by conversion to dimers and trimers, as described in Sect. 7.
Graphical Abstract
Hiroshi Nagase, Hideaki Fujii
Twin and Triplet Drugs in Opioid Research
Abstract
Twin and triplet drugs are defined as compounds that contain respectively two and three pharmacophore components exerting pharmacological effects in a molecule. The twin drug bearing the same pharmacophores is a “symmetrical twin drug”, whereas that possessing different pharmacophores is a “nonsymmetrical twin drug.” In general, the symmetrical twin drug is expected to produce more potent and/or selective pharmacological effects, whereas the nonsymmetrical twin drug is anticipated to show both pharmacological activities stemming from the individual pharmacophores (dual action). On the other hand, nonsymmetrical triplet drugs, which have two of the same pharmacophores and one different moiety, are expected to elicit both increased pharmacological action and dual action. The two identical portions could bind the same receptor sites simultaneously while the third portion could bind a different receptor site or enzyme. This review will mainly focus on the twin and triplet drugs with an evaluation of their in vivo pharmacological effects, and will also include a description of their pharmacology and synthesis.
Graphical Abstract
Hideaki Fujii
3D-Pharmacophore Identification for κ-Opioid Agonists Using Ligand-Based Drug-Design Techniques
Abstract
A selective κ-opioid receptor (KOR) agonist might act as a powerful analgesic without the side effects of μ-opioid receptor-selective drugs such as morphine. The eight classes of known KOR agonists have different chemical structures, making it difficult to construct a pharmacophore model that takes them all into account. Here, we summarize previous efforts to identify the pharmacophore for κ-opioid agonists and propose a new three-dimensional pharmacophore model that encompasses the κ-activities of all classes. This utilizes conformational sampling of agonists by high-temperature molecular dynamics and pharmacophore extraction through a series of molecular superpositions.
Graphical Abstract
Noriyuki Yamaotsu, Shuichi Hirono
Backmatter
Metadata
Title
Chemistry of Opioids
Editor
Hiroshi Nagase
Copyright Year
2011
Publisher
Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Electronic ISBN
978-3-642-18107-8
Print ISBN
978-3-642-18106-1
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-18107-8